What did Russia's Meta listing mean by 17 October 2022?
A look back at the economy-related reports available by 17 October 2022, including Russia's designation of Meta Platforms and a deadly strike on a market in Avdiivka.
What was the picture for business and public life as of 17 October 2022? The reports available by that date pointed to two developments from the preceding week, both tied to the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
On 11 October 2022, Russia added Meta Platforms, the parent company of Instagram and Facebook, to its list of "terrorists and extremists". The stated grounds were that the company tolerated Russophobia and allowed calls to violence against Russians. The step placed one of the world's largest technology groups on the same Russian list as organisations designated for extremism.
The following day, 12 October 2022, Russian forces struck a marketplace in Avdiivka, in Donetsk Oblast. At least seven civilians were killed and eight others injured. A marketplace is a site of everyday trade, and the attack was reported as part of the wider assault on civilians during the Battle of Donbas.
The two events were unconnected in their nature, one an administrative designation and the other a military strike. Together they showed how the war was reaching commercial and civilian spaces, from the digital platforms of a global company to a local market in eastern Ukraine.
